Rutgers–Newark offers undergraduate (bachelors) and graduate (masters, doctoral) programs to more than 12,000 students. The campus is located on 38 acres in Newark's University Heights section. It consists of seven degree-granting undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools, including the Rutgers Business School (which has another campus in New Brunswick) and Rutgers Law School (which has another campus in Camden), and several research institutes, including the Institute of Jazz Studies. According to U.S. News & World Report, Rutgers–Newark is the most diverse national university in the United States.

Rutgers–Newark officially came into existence in 1946, when the New Jersey State Legislature voted to make the University of Newark part of Rutgers University. The roots of Rutgers University, Newark, however, date back to 1908 when the New Jersey Law School first opened its doors. That law school, along with four other educational institutions in Newark — Dana College, the Newark Institute of Arts & Sciences, the Seth Boyden School of Business, and the Mercer Beasley School of Law — formed a series of alliances over the years. A final merger in 1936 resulted in the establishment of the University of Newark. A decade later, the University of Newark was absorbed into Rutgers University and became the school's Newark campus.

However, the campus has its own chief executive (Nancy Cantor). Up until 2008, the chief executive was known as the provost, but then-president Richard L. McCormick changed the title of the chief executive to chancellor.[2]

Rutgers–Newark is located on a campus of 38 acres in Newark's University Heights neighborhood. This neighborhood is within blocks of the commercial center of the city and located near mass transit (bus, rail, and light rail stations). The campus consists of seven degree-granting undergraduate, graduate and professional schools, including: Newark College of Arts and Sciences, University College, School of Criminal Justice, Graduate School-Newark, School of Public Affairs and Administration, Rutgers Business School-Newark and New Brunswick, and Rutgers Law School (Newark campus).

The Newark College of Arts and Sciences (NCAS) enrolls more than 60 percent of the undergraduates at Rutgers University in Newark and is the largest school on campus. With majors in almost 40 fields offering BA, BS, and BFA degrees.

University College–Newark offers undergraduate programs that cater to non-traditional or part-time adult students who have obligations during the day and attend class in the evening or on Saturday.

Founded in 1929, Rutgers Business School–Newark and New Brunswick offers undergraduate and graduate business programs on the Newark and New Brunswick campuses. Accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business International, Rutgers Business School awards B.S., Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.) (including international executive and executive MBAs), and doctoral degrees in management.

The School of Criminal Justice is a national and international center for scholarly research on all aspects of policing, delinquency, crime, and criminal justice administration. The school also provides educational programs that fulfill public service obligations by helping to address the needs of criminal justice agencies within the city, state, nation, and world.

As of 2014, Rutgers–Newark enrolls more than 11,000 students (more than 7,000 undergraduate, nearly 4,000 graduate). Rutgers–Newark awards approximately 80 doctoral degrees, 250 juris doctor degrees, 1,050 master's degrees, and 1,500 baccalaureate degrees each year and was ranked 12th in the nation for quality among small research universities by the 2005 Faculty Scholarly Productivity Index. The Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education classifies the Rutgers–Newark campus as an institution with "high research activity."[4]

There are more than 500 full-time faculty members at Rutgers–Newark, 99 percent of whom hold doctor of philosophy or juris doctor degrees.[citation needed] Faculty on the Newark campus include or have included Pulitzer Prize recipients and members of the National Academy of Sciences, the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences, the American Academy of Arts and Letters, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and the New York Academy of Medicine Fellow. A number of Rutgers–Newark faculty members have been awarded the prestigious Guggenheim Fellowship and named as Fulbright Fellows. Other faculty honors include the National Book Award, Japan's Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon, the Grete Lundbeck European Brain Research Foundation Award ("The Brain Prize"), the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers.[citation needed]

In 2006, The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching selected Rutgers–Newark as one of among a small pool of U.S. colleges and universities for the foundation’s Community Engagement Classification. Specifically, The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching placed Rutgers–Newark in the foundation’s Outreach and Partnerships category, recognizing the university for its ability to apply and provide collaboratively institutional resources that benefit both campus and community.[citation needed]

U.S. News & World Report "Best Colleges" has named Rutgers University's Newark campus, the most [ethnically] diverse national university in the United States since 1997. Twenty-four percent of full-time undergraduate students enrolled in the fall of 2011 were white, 23 percent Asian, 23 percent Latino, 20 percent African American, 7 percent multiracial, multi-ethnic or unknown, and 2 percent foreign. More than 100 nations are represented in the student body.[citation needed]

Undergraduate admissions to Rutgers–Newark are classified as “selective” by U.S. News & World Report. Rutgers University in Newark receives almost 17,000 freshman and transfer applications and enrolls about 1,700 new students each year. Admissions decisions are based on academic potential as demonstrated by grades, grade-point average, class rank and test scores as well as extracurricular activities and demonstrated leadership such as volunteer work, school clubs and organizations, community service and paid employment. Merit scholarships are offered at the acceptance stage to students who demonstrate outstanding academic achievement.

Tuition for full-time, New Jersey residents attending Rutgers University in Newark is $10,954; for non-residents it is $25,732. Fees are $2,343, and the cost of room and board is $12,509.

Typically, nearly 75 percent of the entering class received an offer of financial aid from Rutgers–Newark. Using a student’s Free Application for Financial Student Aid, Rutgers develops a customized financial-aid package based on the student’s qualifications, financial need, and funds available to the university. A financial aid package may include any or a combination of these major financial aid sources: gift aid (e.g., grants, scholarships, and awards), loans, and work-study. Offers typically range from $500 to $24,000, with the average financial aid package reaching $16,000.[citation needed]

Freshman students living on campus are assigned to Woodward Hall. These suite style accommodations are non-cooking and contain three double bedrooms, as well as a bathroom. The rooms and suites are fully furnished, and the building includes a 24-hour computer lab and laundry room.

Returning and transfer students under the age of 21 are assigned to University Square while returning and transfer students who are at least 21 years old are assigned to Talbott Apartments. Both complexes offer single rooms in either a three-person or four-person shared apartment and include a computer lab, study/social lounges, television lounges, a laundry room, and vending area.

Attached to Woodward Hall is Stonsby Commons & Eatery for residents who are on a meal plan. While Woodward Hall residents are required to be on a meal plan, any student may purchase a meal plan and eat in all campus dining halls.

A limited number of family apartment options are available for married or domestic partners and students with children in university-owned brownstones.

The Observer is the independent, student-run newspaper of the Newark Campus. Covering the Newark campus and surrounding University Heights community since 1936, the newspaper publishes every Tuesday morning during the fall and spring semesters.

Encore is the student yearbook of the Rutgers Newark Campus. It has published a yearbook for the graduating senior class since 1936.

WRNU radio station is located in the Paul Robeson Campus Center. It offers a variety of diverse musical and talk-show programs and can be heard by residents in student housing on radio dial 103.9 FM.

The Newark Metro, a multimedia web magazine, covers metropolitan life from Newark and North Jersey to New York City. It is produced by students at Rutgers–Newark under the direction of Professor Robert W. Snyder.

Residence halls operate on electronic lock systems requiring card access 24 hours a day or are staffed 24 hours a day by security guards. Security cameras in residence halls, parking lots, and in other locations act as a deterrent to criminal behavior and serve as an investigative tool. Commissioned police officers supported by other trained personnel patrol regularly.[citation needed]

Each year, the Division of Public Safety conducts workshops for students at orientation, in residence halls, and through “RU Safe” events, which are broadcast over the Rutgers television network. More detailed information on safety procedures is available through the Safety Matters newsletter published annually.

Built in 1977, the Golden Dome Athletic Center is the hub of Rutgers–Newark athletics, seating 2,000. Soccer and softball games are held on Alumni Field, while the Rutgers–Newark baseball team plays at Bears & Eagles Riverfront Stadium, a 6,200-seat ballpark that was home to the Newark Bears, a minor-league professional baseball franchise.[8]

Elizabeth Warren – United States Senator representing Massachusetts; Leo Gottlieb Professor of Law at Harvard Law School; named one the “100 Most Influential People in the World” by Time magazine in 2009